2015

27 November 2015 -
The Bar Council has urged all inducements, not just referral fees, between advocates and litigators be outlawed in its response to the Ministry of Justice’s consultation Preserving and Enhancing the Quality of Criminal Advocacy.

26 November 2015 -
Chairman of the Bar Council Alistair MacDonald QC said:"Investment to modernise courts and tribunals is vital to the successful reform of our criminal justice system and today's Ministry of Justice settlement safeguards the £700 million announced earlier this year.

25 November 2015 -
Chairman of the Bar Alistair MacDonald QC said: “This week’s report from Citizen’s Advice will make uncomfortable reading for those holding the justice budget purse strings. If further cuts to the justice system are planned for the Autumn Statement, the question will be; how do we make sure access to justice is not restricted even further?

24 November 2015 -
Plans to shift the Pupillage Gateway recruitment window to the January to April period have been published by the Bar Council. The representative body for barristers is calling on its members, as well as students, chambers and others involved in pupillage recruitment to respond to the proposals.

24 November 2015 -
Polling results in the Citizens Advice report, Responsive justice: How citizens experience the justice system, show that voters lack confidence in our legal system and have concerns over access to justice.

20 November 2015 -
Today’s report from the Justice Select Committee calls on the Government to repeal the criminal courts charge. The charge is mandatory and is imposed on offenders convicted of a criminal offence to help cover the ‘relevant court costs’ of the proceedings.

17 November 2015 -
Criminal court charges create perverse incentives for the innocent to plead guilty, warns Bar Council chairman Alistair MacDonald QC, ahead of today's Westminster Hall debate. He also points out that we still do not know if the Government is on track to raise £265 million it proposed to bring in over the course of this Parliament.